1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process of measuring product from an oil well, and more particularly to a method of measuring the volume of gas, oil and water passing through a main line within a given period of time.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the oil industry, it is known that the fluid being pumped from an oil well or wells is not pure oil but a mixture or emulsion of gas, oil and water. It is important to monitor the net production of the oil as well as the volume of gas and water that may be produced from the well. Typically, the volume of these components is determined by multiphase and momentum meters, which are expensive and use certain assumptions that may not be accurate. Under line pressure condition, the gas is typically in liquid form and will only partially separate.
Multiphase separator tanks have also been used to determine volume of the mixture. A predetermined volume of mixture is pumped into the tank and allowed to stand for a period of time. The effect of gravity separates the mixture into gas, oil and water due to the different densities of the components. The gas is allowed to escape and the remaining component volumes are measured. However, this system tends to be large, cumbersome and time consuming requiring additional maintenance care and monitoring of the tank.
Another method of measuring is a slipstream method. In this approach, a sampling loop is provided off the path of the main line. A sample of the mixture is drawn from the main line, the volume of the components is measured, and then all products from the mixture are pumped back into the main line. It is a continuous process that leaves the mixture sample at high pressure. Therefore, the gas is still in a liquid state, which leads to inaccuracies in calculating the volume of the gas.
Thus, an in-line sampler separator solving the aforementioned problems is desired.